SAF 2016: Masterpiece Inspirations with the Team

Back in 2012 Neil Gaiman made the commencement speech to the University of the Arts (Philadelphia) graduating class. I stumbled across the video of the full speech last year and it has always stuck with me. I thought this challenge today would be the perfect time to share it with all of you. Please take a moment and watch the abbreviated version of his memorable speech below:

Ack! Every time I see this video, it makes me tear up a bit! Art is important to each and every one of us in a different way. It is something that we can always turn to during both difficult times and joyous times. As you take in all of the beautiful works of art below, remember that these masters are just like you and me. They surely have had struggles, they have had do-overs, they have had pieces end up in trash. But they have also created masterpieces. And that is why we need to continue to create and grow as artists. To let our creative souls sing and create our own masterpiece. So think about your style, your talents and what makes you feel good when you create and make good art for this next challenge!

Each of the team members has selected a particular artist that speaks to them creatively and used them as inspiration for their own work of art. Take a look at their selections below and how they adapted the style, colors, composition and more, into an amazing card.

Amy says, “I’m always inspired by the story of Henri Matisse’s late period art. When traditional painting and sculpting became too challenging due to age, illness, and being confined to a wheelchair, he began creating cut paper collages, or what he called “drawing with scissors.” The cut-outs have an amazing emotional energy to them, and have become some of his most famous works of art. What resonates with me most is that idea of Matisse as an artist who couldn’t be whole without his artistic expression. When faced with challenges, he didn’t give up. He charted a whole new course!”

Ashley says, “Paper crafting is definitely a form of art. However, when you pair it with actual art techniques from master artists, cards exude a unique aesthetic. Jasper Johns is a mixed media artist who inspired me to create a card using numbers and oil/acrylic paints. You won’t want to miss how I’ve used dies and reinkers to recreate his numbers masterpiece.”

Betsy says, “I’m always drawn to mid-century art and artists. I’m especially drawn to those who created artwork for greeting cards — maybe because I feel a connection in some way. They created art to be sent and shared with others, so much like what we do! One artist who’s work always catches my eye is Ralph Hulett. I find his use of color very interesting, as well as how he uses shadows to create depth, plus his bright and amusing holiday images make me smile! I drew inspiration from several of his vintage greeting cards for my project today. I hope you’ll stop by to check it out!”

Danielle says, “As a lover of watercolor paintings, I wanted to find a Master watercolor artist for inspiration. Born and raised in New York City in a cultured French family, John LaFarge became a leading figure in the arts in New York in the 1800’s, known for his exquisite murals, stained glass designs, and innovations of technique. He also was a noted writer and lecturer on art. In London, he was much influenced by John Ruskin, who focused on the importance of art being morally and spiritually uplifting! To read that touched my heart, and I hope today’s post uplifts your spirits as well and inspires you. Happy creating!”

Dawn says, “Monet has long been my favorite artist and his Waterlilies, my favorites of his works. He painted quite a few of them, and they can be found in museums all around the world, and I feel very fortunate to have seen several of them up close and in person at various locations. We even have one of these giant masterpieces at our museum, right here in our city and it still thrills me every time I see it! This particular one pulls at my heart strings just a bit more than some though, because of the amazing colors….that murky teal water paired with the green of the lily pads and the bright pops of color from the flowers….Oh, it just makes me so happy! I couldn’t wait to create my own little Monet-inspired art….I hope you’ll pop over to my blog to check it out!”

Heather says, “Edgar Degas is famous for his classical paintings of modern life. Over half of his work depicts dancers and I am drawn to the fluffy texture and layers that he used to create the costumes and skirts that the dancers wore in his paintings, drawings, and prints. I was inspired by the layers and use of color for the card I created to share today that was inspired by his work “The Green Dancer.”

Kay says, “Georgia O’Keeffe has always been a favorite artist of mine. I love her bold use of color and her lovely floral designs. I chose her Red Poppy painting as my inspiration piece, one because it’s stunning, and it’s always been one of my favorites of hers, and second, because I really wanted to watercolor the poppy in the Botanical Blocks III stamp set. I fell in love with that set the first time I used it, and immediately thought of it for my inspiration piece.”

Laurie says, “Van Goghs Sunflowers is the masterpiece I chose for this years Stamp-a-Faire. I am so inspired by the variation of colors that can be brought to life by many different mediums. I chose to use water colors to create a vibrant sky and then added water to the sunflower stamped images. Sunflowers are prevalent here in Kansas and this was a major draw when choosing this masterpiece. I love seeing the sunflower fields bloom every summer and I instantly thought of PTIs Simple Sunflower set to use for this project.”

Lexi says,”I couldn’t wait for Stamp-a-faire to create a Mondrian inspired card with Cover Plate: Comic Strip. Clean and simple, bold and bright, lots of white. These phrases that describe the artist’s work so perfectly are also what I aim for with every card I stamp – how did I not create some of these cards sooner?! “

Lizzie says, “Impressionism has long been a favorite of mine and I knew I wanted to draw upon one of the French masters for this challenge. When I look at this painting by Berthe Morisot, I see romanticism, gorgeous, layered brush strokes, and a cool, serene palette that just draws you in. I love how she softens the edges of her subject and uses pops of bright pink to direct your eye. I hope I’ve done the original piece justice with my reinterpretation.”

Melissa says, “I have always had a love for primitive art… Waren Kimble’s artwork in particular. When asked to create a card based on a favorite master artist, I looked around my house, at all of the primitive artwork I enjoy each day, including several of Waren Kimble’s pictures, and decided to focus my efforts on replicating something of his. After the darling pineapple from the Some Like it Hot stamp set was released, I wanted to “prim” it up and bit and knew that the Welcome Pineapple picture of Waren’s was the perfect opportunity. Something as simple as stamping on Kraft cardstock instead of my usual brighter white, created an instant transformation…in effect creating a warmer, more rustic feel as is the case in Waren Kimble’s artwork. Mixing and matching different stamp sets to suit the theme and mood of this picture, was another fun way to replicate his beautiful artwork.”

–Now it’s your turn! Use one of the inspiration pieces that the team selected above as a jumping point for your own piece of art. You can choose to re-create the exact project from the designers above or design your own. Your project must also incorporate at least one Papertrey product.

–Post your project on your blog, in your gallery or on any other photo-hosting site (such as photobucket or flickr).

–-Add your project to the InLinkz list below.

–You will have until 7am ET, Tuesday, July 26th, to add your link to the list to be eligible to win. One project per person please.

–As a reminder, you will have until 7am ET, Tuesday, July 26th, to add your link to the list to be eligible to win.

–TWO randomly selected winners will be chosen from ALL the entries within this list on Tuesday, July 26th. The winners will be posted on our Tuesday night Stamp-a-faire winners page after 9pm ET. The randomly selected winners will each get a $25 PTI gift certificate to spend however they like!

Oh how fun to see all these masterpieces & how each of you was inspired to use them in creating cards! I’m going to keep this printout to use for inspiration in the future as well as a project for SAF–thank you!

Speaking of The Masters? We’ve got them right here in the PTI Design Team. The artists’ interpretations are fabulous but so are those created/painted by each member of the team. I am in awe of the beauty, and plan to keep these handy for future inspiration or to jumpstart my mojo. Now to pick one and create my own version.

Wow!! All of these cards from the team are amazingly creative!! Thanks so much for all the fun challenges! I chose to go with Betsy Veldman’s artist, Ralph Huett. I loved his holiday cards!And Betsy’s was just as creative and a wonderful inspiration!!

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